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Seth Milstein

Intelligence and Decision Making in Asymmetric Warfare

MAJ Stoney Trent, Ph.D.

At this time of year all the talk shows and newspapers do some kind of year in review with projections for the new year and that's what I was planning to do here for the Intelligence Community but I am going to demur, as it seems to me that the most significant event of 2007 with the likely greatest impact for 2008 occurred on 27 December ----- the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in Rawalpindi Pakistan.

Technology innovations and lessons learned in Iraq and Afghanistan are driving new directions in the U.S. Army’s communications road map. Because technology is changing capabilities so quickly—and because the need to equip combat forces in Southwest Asia is paramount—the Army is incorporating shorter decision cycles to measure progress as it speeds desperately needed capabilities to its warfighters.

With the termination of supplementary funds looming, the U.S. military is bracing for the acquisition environment of the future. Much of the defense budgets in the near term will be allocated to replace critical equipment worn out faster than anticipated by wartime operations. As a result, other programs will have to vie for the funding they require. In the information technology sector, acquisitions experts also are striving to reduce the time required for accepting delivery of new technology so troops can stay ahead of the development curve.

The architects of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s procurement office are refining the organization’s blueprints for acquisition. Leaders are renovating the past procedures to fix problems and introducing new ideas that firmly yet flexibly establish best business practices for the future. More will be expected from companies, but at the same time more opportunities to work with the department will be available.

Having long relied upon military prowess and diplomatic skills to project and protect its interests on the seas, on land and in aerospace, the United States now is in conflict with stateless entities seeking hearts and minds, not land or treasure. It is a global contest of words and images, waged on a battlefield called cyberspace where rules of engagement that govern traditional conflict don’t apply and plans for a multiagency effort to protect the information infrastructure have not yet been adopted.

Protecting space-based assets is now the top priority for the U.S. Air Force Space Command, according to its commander. With the military’s reliance on network centricity well established, communications and situational awareness satellites have increased in significance to military operations—and to potential adversaries seeking to counter Western goals without confronting superior allied forces directly. And, the private sector is equally dependent on the many capabilities inherent in orbital platforms.

Cyberspace is the latest realm that the U.S. Defense Department is seeking to dominate in its efforts to protect national security and to project force. But this goal has not gone unchallenged as hackers from a variety of nations and criminal and terrorist organizations have tried to penetrate government networks to steal information or cause damage.